


Imperfect

by Uncle_Riko



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project, Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-16
Updated: 2018-03-16
Packaged: 2019-04-01 00:51:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13986909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Uncle_Riko/pseuds/Uncle_Riko
Summary: Dia’s ears perked up. Normally, this far into a conversation with Kanan she’d find herself inevitably disinterested in anything she had to say, but the scent of competition was far too enticing.





	Imperfect

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! this is set in @jhaskii's KanaDia Nerd/Jock AU on tumblr!!
> 
> although now that I'm looking at the whole fic, it's a very loose interpretation lol

“Hey, Dia—"

“What is it, Matsuura-san?” Dia snapped. “ _Some_ people actually like to _study_ during Study Hall.”

Kanan laughed at Dia’s usual sternness. She was kind of cute though when she was mad, which was, oh let’s see… _all the time._ “Oh, it’s nothing, I was just thinking you looked especially angry today. Thought, maybe you did poorly on the last test or something.”

Dia finally set her book down, with as calm a façade as she could muster—obviously a sign that she was about to set Kanan straight. “I happened to get a perfect score on the last test, thank you very much.” She returned fire, noticing Kanan’s derpy smile, “And why do _you_ look so happy? Finally pass a test for once in your life?”

“Hey, how’d you know? I got a 65% on my last test hehe.”

“ _That’s_ your definition of passing…?” Kanan’s making light of the whole situation seemed rather inappropriate to Dia. But this _was_ Kanan Matsuura after all, it’s not like she was the sharpest tool in the shed. A seasoned hoe, to be sure, but Dia certainly had the decency to keep those thoughts to herself.

Kanan’s retort was delivered with a pout, a rather ineffective one, Dia might add (probably because Kanan had that stupid grin on her face every goddamn second of her life), “Hey, I’ll have you know I could get straight A’s if I wanted to, just like you, Little Miss Smarty Pants. I’m just busy with the swim team.”

“Hmph, then prove it.”

“Fine, how ‘bout a little wager then?”

Dia’s ears perked up. Normally, this far into a conversation with Kanan she’d find herself inevitably disinterested in anything she had to say, but the scent of competition was far too enticing. “…I’m listening.”

“It’s simple, really. Whoever does better on the next test wins.” Kanan folded her arms, a pleased look on her face, as if she’d already won. Dia would sure love to know where all that cockiness came from, especially with a scholastic track record as ghastly as hers.

“And? What do I get when I win this little competition of yours?”

The swimmer smirked, surprised by the amount of sass she was getting. “I dunno, come up with something. But if _I_ win, I get to kiss you.”

That certainly caught Dia off guard. In no time at all, her pompous demeanor seemed to all but crumble. “K-Kiss me!? W-What on earth—”

“Shhh, someone’ll hear you if you shout like that,” Kanan teased, much to Dia’s increasing rage.

“Fine!” Dia huffed. “But when _I_ win, you can’t bother me for a whole week!”

“Huh…?” Kanan’s smile quickly faded. Dia had said quite a few nasty things to her over the course of their acquaintance, but most of it Kanan wrote off as just Dia being Dia. But even if Dia was just reacting to the whole kiss thing, it was hard to not to feel like an arrow just shot through her heart; Dia really did only see her as a bother, after all.

“…That’s fine,” Kanan ultimately agreed, “It’s not like I’m gonna lose…”

Dia turned her attention back to her book, oblivious to the entirety of Kanan’s feelings. “Hmph, well you might as well start studying now, if you want to even have a chance at besting me!”

 

* * *

 

Dia strutted through the halls, a confident swagger about her. Nothing like the spirit of competition, of friendly sport, if you will, unlike that horrid mess of a “sport” Kanan indulged in (splashing around in the water was all it was, Dia herself could do as much). At the top of the academic ladder, there’d been a severe shortage of challenges to Dia’s throne of late, and though Kanan herself could hardly be considered competition, it sure was going to feel good putting that arrogant jock in her place.

Still, as on-top-of-the-world as Dia was feeling, she couldn’t help but sense that something was off about Kanan. Had she been too harsh in her demands? No, nonsense! After all, should Kanan win (which, Dia should point out, was nigh on impossible), the prize was Dia’s very chastity; a week of Kanan-free silence hardly seemed like a stiff punishment. But that didn’t absolve Dia of her feelings of guilt, if anything, looking at how she’d been treating Kanan of late made her feel even more guilty about the whole thing.

Kanan wasn’t a bully, nor even mean, not by any stretch of the imagination. Sure, she could be a bit bothersome at times, but it really did seem like she was just trying to be friendly. And yet, how did Dia repay her? With sass and ice and rudeness and everything in between. It wasn’t Dia’s intent to come across as such a fun-sucker, but she just wasn’t a people person. Besides her one friend, Mari, no one had ever given her the time of day. She’d been so totally unprepared for someone like Kanan to just come barging into her life, so who could blame her for acting the way she did, for shutting Kanan out?

But despite it all, Kanan had put up with her this whole time. And if she was putting forth the effort, why couldn’t Dia?

.  .  .

As she was wont to do just about every day after school, Dia headed towards the library, eager to get a head start on her studies, lest she be distracted by her ever-growing conscience. She waved hello to the first-year librarian, before heading to her usual table. Dia was a nerd, through and through, the mere scent of old books firing her up. There was really nothing quite like a nice study session to clear her head. As she approached her usual table, she almost sat down, before noticing someone else had beat her there.

“Eh, Dia? Here to study?”

Dia reeled back, having almost made the mistake of sitting right next to Kanan, who was unexpectedly sat at _her_ table, “O-Of course, I am! And what are _you_ doing here Matsuura? Surely, you’re not studying?”

“Well, if I’m gonna get serious about beating you, I gotta buckle down.” There was a coarseness to her words, they weren’t as light and flirty as they usually were. But perhaps Dia was imagining things.

“Hmph, well don’t come crying to me when your time and efforts bear no fruit; no matter how much you study you won’t be beating me.”

“Dia Kurosawa trash talking? I never thought I’d see the day.”

“I am not trash talking! I’m simply stating the truth!” Dia huffed. “I-In any case, it seems you’ve taken my usual spot…”

“Hm? Oh, sorry. Had I known I’d bump into you here, I would’ve studied elsewhere, since, you know, I don’t want to be a bother.”

Dia could only stare back blankly in response. Now she was certain she wasn’t imagining things.

Kanan slung her bag over her shoulder, “Well, I guess I’ll get out of here—"

“Wait!” Dia found her arm subconsciously outstretched, gripping Kanan’s, “W-Why don’t you stay? No reason why we can’t share the table…”

“Consorting with the enemy? That’s a bold strategy, Dia.”

“Enemy…?”

“I mean, it’s not like we’re friends, or anything.” Kanan’s sullen expression was ever apparent, her comment dripping with poison. She finally broke the silence, after seeing Dia dumbstruck and at a loss for words, “I think I’m gonna head home now, good luck with your studying.”

 

* * *

 

The rest of the week was strangely quiet. No surprise ambushes at Dia’s locker, no middle-of-class interruptions, nothing. The obvious conclusion would be that Kanan was busy with her own studying, and didn’t have time to bother Dia. But Dia knew that was just wishful thinking. Sure, she was smart, but it didn’t take a genius to realize that Kanan was obviously avoiding her. This was merely a preview of what was to come the following week, after she won the bet. But whether Dia should enjoy it or not was an entirely different dilemma.

As the day of the test arrived, Dia found herself drained and defeated already. The whole Kanan situation was weighing down on her. While it was affecting her ability to focus, of course it wouldn’t affect her performance on the test; she’d receive another perfect score, no problem. But the implications of said perfect score were what was bothering her. Maybe she could throw the test, give Kanan the win? But what did that say about her? That she felt bad for Kanan? That she pitied her? Dia would never stoop so low. Besides, she’d asked for this. And as an honor student, she was obligated to follow through to the best of her ability.

Dia took her seat, stealing a furtive glance at Kanan. There was an air of seriousness about her—maybe she was trying to make her own statement, that she had what it takes to go toe-to-toe with Dia. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Dia was rooting for her.

With the test now in front of her, Dia took a deep breath, and reached for her trusty test-taking pencil, only to find it wasn’t there.

 _Haha, how silly of me, forgot to take it out of my bag._ But her worry only increased as she dug through her bag and found nothing but empty space. Forget her test-taking pencil, she hadn’t brought a single writing utensil with her.

Beads of sweat began to drip down her face. This was _not_ how she was going to lose, Kanan deserved a fair fight, after all. Maybe she could make a run to her locker? Or she could ask the teacher, yes, surely they’d lend her a pencil—

Dia’s panic was interrupted by the butt end of an eraser poking her shoulder. She turned to her left to find Kanan’s arm extended, offering her a pencil.

 

* * *

 

Dia walked back to her seat, test results in hand. She passed Kanan, feet kicked up on the desk, arms folded behind her head. She was staring wistfully out the window, as if she knew she’d lost already.

“H-How’d you fare, Matsuura-san?” Dia awkwardly inquired.

“You’re gonna have to be damn near perfect to beat me, Dia,” Kanan announced, more to Dia’s reflection in the window than to Dia herself. She flipped over her test, revealing a 98%. “But then again, Dia Kurosawa is always perfect, isn’t she?”

Dia had no response. She couldn't bring herself to show Kanan her test score, not that it mattered; Kanan seemed to know the outcome already. Dia sat down in her desk, staring aimlessly into space, even as the bell rang. She didn't feel perfect, far from it. For the first time in a long time, she felt like a failure.

Kanan leaned back in her chair, and for the briefest of moments, Dia could’ve sworn she saw a smirk on her face. “A deal’s a deal. I’ll get out of your hair.” She stood up, gathering her things.

“Eh? Oh, r-right…” Dia had almost expected some fight out of Kanan, some resistance, but there was nothing. And just like that, Dia found herself alone.

And so began a week without Kanan.

 

* * *

 

Day one proved to be quite anticlimactic. Dia was certain Kanan would break her promise, that first thing in the morning, Kanan would scare her at her locker, or pester her during Study Hall—in fact, she almost wished for this to be the case. Dia would chastise her, and Kanan would laugh it off, and things would go back to normal. But as Kanan walked into class, passing right by Dia, she took her seat, and didn’t say a word.

B-But that was perfectly fine. After all, Dia had asked for this, didn’t she? Kanan was simply keeping her promise. Dia would’ve done the same had she lost to Kanan.

.  .  .

Day two it was raining, nothing out of the ordinary, except that Kanan had the biggest smile on her face, running haphazardly through the rain, bag held high over her head, laughing and joking with her friends who had all forgotten their umbrellas.

 _Maybe her good mood will carry over into first period,_ Dia had mused, but as soon as their eyes met, Kanan had averted her gaze, her smile instantly and permanently vanishing.

.  .  .

Day three and Kanan hadn’t still hadn’t said a word to her. Dia was impressed, but this was getting borderline maddening. She dug around in her bag for the pencil Kanan had lent her. She’d been meaning to give it back but she’d never found the proper opportunity. She didn’t even care anymore about trying to trip Kanan up, making her break her promise. She just wanted to hear her voice again.

“…M-Matsuura-san?”

Kanan continued to stare out the window, failing to even acknowledge her classmate.

“ _Matsuura-san!_ ”

Still nothing. Dia was starting to get frustrated. “I was going to thank you for helping me, but if you’re just going to ignore me then here!! Take your stupid pencil!” She slammed the pencil down on Kanan’s desk storming out of the classroom.

It wasn’t often that Dia skipped class, but in that moment, things like school and grades just didn’t seem to matter all that much anymore. Dia found herself in the bathroom crying for the second period in a row. Why was she letting some stupid jock get to her? She didn’t even like Kanan, and yet being ignored by her felt so incredibly terrible. She’d won that stupid bet, hadn’t she? Why should she be the one to suffer?

The worst part was, she was the one that had asked for this.

 

* * *

 

Dia breathed a sigh of relief the following Monday as she walked into class. The longest week of her life was over. Now things could finally go back to normal.

Kanan walked in soon after, prompting Dia to nervously shift in her seat. All she wanted was Kanan’s standard good morning greeting, an olive branch, something to confirm that their stupid little squabble was through.

But that greeting never came.

Perhaps Kanan had forgotten that she used to greet Dia in the morning? It’d been so long, Dia certainly couldn’t blame her. Maybe she herself could try a morning greeting for once, surely Kanan would respond to that. “G-Good morning, Matsuura-san…!”

Not even a glance in return.

This was getting ridiculous. Beyond ridiculous. Dia felt her blood begin to boil. She shed far too many tears, laid awake far too many nights just thinking about Kanan; she wasn’t about to lose her, by her own hand no less. But if Kanan couldn’t see Dia was sorry, well, too bad, she’d make her see.

“GODDAMNIT, LOOK AT ME, KANAN!”

Surprised by the sudden outburst, Kanan had no choice but to respond, “W-What is it, Dia? I’ve kept my word haven’t I—”

“You’ve more than kept your word! It’s been two weeks, you can stop ignoring me now!”

Kanan fell silent once more.

Dia could feel the tears welling up in her eyes. “Just forget the stupid bet!! I forfeit, I quit, whatever it takes, I’m sorry, ok!?”

“You won fair and square though—”

“I don’t care!! I never wanted this! Look, I’m sorry that I’m always mean to you, but I-I can’t help it, I’m not perfect, I’m a mess around people, especially those that care about me…I never would’ve said what I said if I knew it’d hurt you this much…”

Kanan bit her lip, her armor on the verge of cracking. Tears began to stream down her face. She wanted so much to believe Dia, to go back to how things were. But it just wasn’t that simple. And maybe she was right, maybe they couldn’t go back to the past. But they could always move forward.

Dia took Kanan’s cheeks, sandwiching them between her palms. With a fierce determination, she stared into Kanan’s bewildered violet eyes before screwing her own eyes shut, leaning forward, until her lips met Kanan’s,

 

“…You win…ok?”

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> i think right when I saw this AU I really liked the idea of Kanan actually being smart, and seeing that was one of the actual headcanons made me finally get off my ass and write this! I apologize that it ended up so angsty, that wasn't my intention from the start, and I think that gets in the way of proper characterization, especially of Dia, but hopefully it isn't too bad haha
> 
> Also, it's kinda a hard inference, I'd originally had it as part of the ending, but Kanan does actually throw the test and lets Dia win, just some food for thought lol


End file.
